


8 - Journey's End

by Kat_Lovegood



Series: Professor Layton Advent Calendar [8]
Category: Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series
Genre: Advent Calendar, Advent Calendar Drabble, Gen, Layton's Mystery Journey Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-07
Updated: 2019-12-07
Packaged: 2021-02-18 12:44:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21710965
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kat_Lovegood/pseuds/Kat_Lovegood
Summary: A short drabble about what happened after the end of Mystery Journey...
Relationships: Katrielle Layton & Ernest Greeves
Series: Professor Layton Advent Calendar [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1557985
Comments: 1
Kudos: 9





	8 - Journey's End

The snow was falling slowly, covering London‘s streets quickly. Ernest, Sherl and Katrielle walked silently through the quiet streets, admiring the beautiful lights that decorated almost every window. It had been an eventful day for the three of them, and Ernest was still trying to wrap his head around everything that had just happened. Things definitely didn‘t go down as he had planned them, but he was oddly pleased anyway. There was a sudden feeling of warmth in his heart that he seemed to have missed for the past seven years. And though it was mixed with guilt – and lots of embarrassment – it made the young man smile as he stepped through the snow.

Katrielle was lost in thought as well. She was unusually quiet, Sherl thought. He wondered whether it had anything to do with what she had just told them about her father.

„If you are not really my daughter, then who exactly are you?“

It was some sort of puzzle, that much was clear. If Sherl was informed correctly, Professor Layton had quite a reputation for being almost obsessed with those, and Katrielle seemed to really love them, too.

With all of them preoccupied with their own thoughts, the three of them would have almost walked past the detective agency – Ernest and Sherl would have, at least. Katrielle just suddenly stopped in her tracks, and Ernest and Sherl almost slipped down on the frozen ground when they turned around to see why she had done so.

The agency seemed empty and forlorn, as there were no lights in the windows. Not even a single piece of Christmas decor could be spotted – Katrielle had been busy with cases, Ernest had somehow managed to help her, doing his coursework and apparently organizing the puzzle game they had participated in tonight, and Sherl was, well, a dog.

Katrielle turned the key in the lock and turned the light on as they all entered. It was markedly warmer inside than out on the streets, but still pretty cold. So Katrielle went about to fix that, while Ernest retreated to the small kitchen in the back of the agency to prepare Miss Layton‘s favourite tea. A little while later, Katrielle had draped herself comfortably across the sofa, with Sherl lying next to her, and Ernest had – rather awkwardly – taken a seat opposite her.

It was peculiar how this situation was both so familiar to all of them by now – having occurred almost every evening after the successful completion of a case – and yet felt so strange.

They sat there in silence for a while, until suddenly the clock stroke midnight.

„Merry Christmas, Ernest Greeves“, Katrielle said with a little smile.

„Merry Christmas, Miss Layton“, the boy answered.

„Please, Ernest, call me Katrielle. We‘ve been through a lot together this past month, and we know each other a lot better now“, the girl corrected him.

„But you… you are my boss, Miss. And I owe you so much.. It wouldn‘t feel right...“, Ernest stammered.

„I‘m not really your boss, Ernest. We have never made a contract – I don‘t even pay you! And you don‘t owe me, either. You have helped me so much, put so much time into cleaning the agency and assisting me with cases. I have only helped you twice.“

„But it has made such a huge difference for me! You saved me, Miss… Katrielle“, Ernest protested.

„I have not saved you, either. You have been wrongly accused once, and it was not your fault at all that you needed my help. And tonight… well, even if I had not been there, it wouldn‘t have made much of a difference, I think. The Dragons would have just told you themselves, I guess. It‘s not as if you would have destroyed the City with giant robots or something...“, she insisted.

„Hang on, giant what?“, Sherl interfered.

„Oh, It‘s just something my father used to tell me lots of stories about. People threatening City‘s with giant robots to get some obscure revenge and puzzle competitions and swordfights… He used to do that a lot. I think that‘s why I wanted to be a detective, to solve mysteries, just like him. But I‘m not really a good detective, am I? All the puzzles I solved were so… silly, somehow“, she sighed. There were tears in her eyes now.

Ernest and Sherl were concerned. What had happened to the ever-so-confident-bordering on-arrogant, cheerful young woman they knew and loved? All that optimism seemed to have vanished now. And they could see the somewhat frail, insecure young girl underneath. The young girl that had been left all alone by her father, who wasn‘t even really her father, apparently. The young girl that had so many questions, and so little answers. The young girl that was confused, scared, sad and lonely. But she was still Katrielle Layton, their friend.

„Oi, come on Kat, don‘t be so harsh on yourself! You really made a difference to all the people you helped! And even if you didn‘t save the world, or all of London, or whatever, you still did a lot of good“, Sherl tried to cheer her up. It felt a little weird, as he was so used to pulling Kat back to the ground of harsh reality.

„Yes, Miss… Katrielle! You are a really good detective, and you have solved every puzzle and every case thrown your way so far! You will solve this one too, I‘m sure!“, Ernest said enthusiastically, having rather more experience with this sort of thing. Though it sounded less exaggerated then it usually did, Sherl noted.

Katrielle smiled weakly and wiped the tears from her face.

„Thank you, you two. I just hope you will stay… Ernest. I know I can‘t pay you, not much anyway, but we could be… partners, maybe? Partners in crime-solving! I would like that a lot, you know?“, she asked.

„Of course, Katrielle! Though I am actually surprised you still want me, after everything I have done...“, he replied.

„Of course I still want you! Who else would keep this place running – and, more importantly, keep the office clean?“, she answered.

Sherl was relieved to have the old Kat back, though just this once he didn‘t make a comment on how she treated Ernest, as he wasn‘t sure if she could take it right now.

„I‘m just glad you don‘t know much about mechanics“, Katrielle added with a smile.


End file.
